Bulgaria: CME Buys Bulgaria’s Most Watched TV Channel · Global Voices
Ruslan Trad

On Feb. 18, 2010, bTV, one of the most popular TV channels in Bulgaria, got a new owner – Central European Media Enterprises. bTV is the first private national TV station in Bulgaria. bTV’s program was broadcast for the first time on June 1, 2000, thus breaking the monopoly of the public national TV station and changing entirely the media environment in Bulgaria.
For eight years, bTV firmly established itself as the most watched TV channel in Bulgaria, with nearly 37% share of all viewers and with leading positions on the advertising market. bTV has a 24-hour programming. It targets the family audience, offering a quality selection of movies, reality formats, talk shows and comedy programs. The news and feature programs of bTV established themselves as the information leader with the highest rating of viewers’ trust.
Central European Media Enterprises, which has acquired bTV, is the leading television broadcaster in Central and Eastern Europe. The company was founded by Ronald Lauder in 1994 and together with its local partners it operates TV Nova, Nova Sport, Nova Cinema and MTV in the Czech Republic, PRO TV, PRO TV International, ACASA, PRO CINEMA, Sport.ro and MTV Romania in Romania, TV Markíza, Nova Sport, Television Doma and MTV in Slovakia, POP TV, Kanal A and TV Pika in Slovenia, and Studio 1+1, 1+1 International and Kino in Ukraine.
On my blog [BUL], I publish information about this deal:
[…] Under the terms of the deal, CME will acquire 100% of bTV […]. CME will pay $400 million for 100% of bTV and parts of bTV Comedy and bTV Cinema and 74% of the radio stations N-Joy, Z-Rock, Melody, Jazz FM, Classic FM. […]
Maryan Tomov wrote this on his blog Journalist BG:
There is nothing new that the deal is being prepared since the middle of last year. […] My sources from Pro.bg informed me that the conclusion of an agreement is only a matter of time, so much for that. Today (January 27th) Reuters said that CME is in the final stage of negotiations for the buying of bTV from Rupert Murdoc's News Corporation for $500 million. […]
Another blog, BGtelevizor, wrote [BUL]:
[…] Adrian Sarbu, President and CEO of CME, said the purchase of bTV is the next step in the repositioning of CME after the sale of their business in Ukraine […]